The McLendon Foundation is excited to offer thirteen postgraduate scholarships to candidates planning to earn a master’s degree in a field that will help them pursue a career in the sports industry. 

• Seven (7) $10,000 McLendon Scholarships
  • Open to ethnic minorities
• One (1) $10,000 scholarship presented by the Fiesta Bowl
  • Open to ethnic minorities who graduated from a 4-year college based in Arizona, or who are enrolled in or accepted to an Arizona graduate program
• Two (2) fully funded spots into UMass Amherst's Mark H. McCormack MBA/MS or MS Sport Management Program
  • Open to all applicants
• Two (2) $10,000 CIAA scholarships
  • Open to women and ethnic minorities who graduated from a CIAA member institution and are entering their first year of grad school
• One (1) $10,000 scholarship to a student enrolling in Carthage College's on campus or online sport management program
  • Open to all applicants

Nomination Criteria

To be considered for a McLendon Postgraduate Scholarship, an applicant must:

1. Academic:
   • College seniors who plan to pursue their first master’s degree (in the United States) in a field leading to a career in the sports industry are eligible to apply
   • Individuals who have already earned their undergraduate degree and plan to begin their first master’s program (in the United States) are also eligible
   • Current full-time graduate students pursuing their first master’s degree in the United States, who will not graduate before September 2027, may apply
   • Ph.D. candidates and individuals who have already completed a master’s degree are not eligible
2. Scholarship Timing:
   • McLendon & Fiesta Bowl Scholarship: award must be used within 5 years of receipt
   • UMass / McCormack program and Carthage: applicants must plan to enroll in Fall 2027
   • CIAA scholarships: applicants must plan to enroll in Summer/Fall 2027 or Spring 2028
3. Have a minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 (based on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent in the undergraduate curriculum.  If enrolled in graduate school, current graduate GPA will not be considered.
4. Meet the eligibility requirements for each scholarship applied to:
   • McLendon Scholarship: must identify as an ethnic minority (see definitions below)
   • McLendon Fiesta Bowl Scholarship: must identify as an ethnic minority (see definitions below) and have graduated from a 4-year college based in Arizona, or be enrolled in or accepted to an Arizona graduate program
   • McLendon/McCormack (UMass Amherst) Scholarship: open to all applicants
   • McLendon/CIAA Scholarship: must have graduated from a CIAA member institution and identify as a woman or an ethnic minority (see definitions below)
   • McLendon/Carthage College Scholarship: open to all applicants
5. Ethnic minority is defined as identifying as one of the following:
   • Black - All persons having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa.
   • Hispanic - All persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture of origin, regardless of race.
   • Asian or Pacific Islander - All persons having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent or the Pacific Islands. This area includes, for example, China, India, Japan, Korea, the Philippine Islands and Samoa.
   • American Indian or Alaskan Native - All persons having origins in any of the original peoples of North America, and who maintain cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community recognition.

6. Applicants (except those applying only to the McLendon/McCormack (UMass) scholarship, for which no essay is required) must submit two separate responses, responding to the questions below. Each essay response should be uploaded as part of one combined document, and the total word count across both must not exceed 1,200 words.

   1. What personal experiences have shaped your leadership style, and how will you use those experiences to inspire and lead others in the sports industry?
   2. How can the McLendon Foundation help you achieve your dreams and support your journey in the sports industry?
7. Submit an undergraduate transcript (unofficial transcripts are accepted)
8. Submit a resume
9. Submit a graduate school transcript if currently enrolled in a program

All applications MUST be received no later than 11:59 PM PST on February 15th 2027.

If you have any questions, please reach out to us at mclendonfoundation@gmail.com

Applicant Information

Please note, correspondence regarding application status will be sent to these addresses.

Applying to McCormack only? You can submit this form now without the essay. If you would like to apply for other scholarships later, simply submit this form again with your full application, including the essay, before the deadline. Please visit UMass Amherst's graduate applications page to submit your application. 

APPLY HERE 

As a part of the application process to UMass, you will be required to submit the following:

1. Application Form
2. Personal Statement
3. Resume
4. At least two Letters of reference (these can come after the deadline, if needed)
5. Undergraduate transcripts (this can come after the deadline if needed)
6. Note: GMAT/GRE scores and the Application fee for McLendon Applicants are waived.

Personal Statement Prompt: Describe what makes you an exceptional and ideal candidate for UMass Amherst's top-ranked McCormack Graduate Program? What has drawn you specifically to this program, and what do you hope to gain if admitted? Project what your professional goals coming out of the program might be, and what segment of the sports industry you are most interested in impacting. How will you endeavor to become a leader in this segment, and what skills will you need to acquire in order to do so?

If you have any trouble accessing the application or submitting it please contact Will Norton (wnorton@isenberg.umass.edu).